Knowledge of and willingness to try acupuncture for postoperative nausea and vomiting: an Australian survey of surgical patients.

Abstract

INTRODUCTION:

Level 1 evidence supports the use of acupuncture as a safe and effective treatment for postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV). However, to date, very few hospitals in Western countries have incorporated this technique into their management strategies.

OBJECTIVE:

To conduct a survey to establish patients' knowledge and opinions of acupuncture as a treatment option for the management of PONV in a large Western teaching hospital that did not offer acupuncture.

METHODS:

Over a 4-week period, a self-completed, anonymous questionnaire survey was distributed to 171 consecutive patients attending the preadmission clinic pending surgery.

RESULTS:

Overall, 161 participants met the selection criteria and completed the survey (100%). The majority of them had a European background (88.8%) and were over 40 years old (87.6%). Seventy-eight participants (48%) had a history of nausea and vomiting and 39 (24%) had suffered from PONV. One hundred and four (65%) and 110 (68%) patients, respectively, stated that they would be willing to try acupuncture in hospital or at home following surgery to prevent or reduce PONV. Only 25 (15.5%) participants knew that acupuncture could be used to treat nausea and vomiting; however, 140 (87%) indicated that they would be willing to try the therapy after being informed of the potential benefit of acupuncture for PONV prevention/reduction. Those with previous experience of acupuncture were ~3.9 times more likely to be willing to use acupuncture for PONV than those without.

CONCLUSION:

Patients attending an Australian tertiary hospital showed an overwhelming interest in acupuncture to manage PONV. This provides strong support for the potential implementation of acupuncture in an acute hospital setting.

• Authors: Evan M Weeks, Jane Trinca, Zhen Zheng
• Journal: Acupuncture in medicine : journal of the British Medical Acupuncture Society (Acupunct Med) Vol. 35 Issue 5 Pg. 345-351 (Oct 2017) ISSN: 1759-9873 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 28655706 (Publication Type: Journal Article)
• Copyright: © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

Topics

• Acupuncture
• Acupuncture Therapy
• Adolescent
• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Australia
• Awareness
• Europe
• Female
• Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Patient Acceptance of Health Care
• Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting (therapy)
• Surveys and Questionnaires
• Tertiary Care Centers
• Young Adult